Houndstooth Coffee’s third Austin location is now open, and cocktails are coming

The new Houndstooth Coffee location in East Austin hopes to draw commuters needing their caffeine fix in the mornings and happy hour crowds wanting cocktails in the evenings.

But hang on. While it’s still in soft open, Houndstooth’s third local cafe is only open through 5 p.m. for now, and cocktails aren’t quite on the menu yet. They’re coming, however, which will give this location something the other two don’t have.

In addition to the planned cocktails, the coffee shop on Martin Luther King, Jr., Boulevard has beer, wine and coffee.

As we noted last year when the third Houndstooth location was announced, cocktails are a first for the Austin shops. The Congress Avenue location has coffee only, including nonalcoholic coffee and tea cocktails, while the North Lamar Boulevard spot has beer and wine in addition to coffee.

A coffee shop bolstering a menu of hard booze is uncommon but not unheard of — the 24-hour Buzz Mill off Riverside Drive has house liquor infusions, for example. And both locations of Halcyon specialize in coffee cocktails. Beer at coffee shops, on the other hand, is far more common.

Cocktails at the East Austin shop include Red Headed Oaxacan, a smoky agave version of a Penicillin with reposado, mezcal, ginger honey, lemon and a spray of Bowmore 12 Year Old Scotch Whisky, as well as the Earl’d Fashion’d with bonded bourbon, orange and Angostura bitters, and maple syrup smoked with Earl Grey tea.

Like the other locations, the interior of this Houndstooth is modern and airy, with seating centered around a large U-shaped counter. There will also be an outdoor patio.

Once the cocktails arrive, Houndstooth will be open 6:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Mondays, 6:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. Tuesdays through Thursdays , and 6:30 a.m to 12 a.m. Fridays through Sundays. This week, for the soft open, the hours are 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. It’s located at 2823 E. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. Ste. 101, not far from one of the stops of the MetroRail.